Flat-panel display maker Innolux Corp (群創) yesterday said its vehicle display unit, CarUX Holding Ltd, is to fully acquire Japan’s Pioneer Corp in a cash deal valued at about NT$37.7 billion (US$1.3 billion) in a bid to enhance its smart cockpit product lineup for audio and human-machine-interface applications.
Innolux said it has reached an agreement with EQT Partners AB, a global investment firm, to acquire 100 percent of Pioneer shares.
The Japanese firm became a private company after EQT acquired it three years ago.
Photo: Chen Mei-ying, Taipei Times
The strategic acquisition would significantly increase CarUX’s penetration in the Asia-Pacific market and enrich its business portfolios, Innolux and CarUX chairman Jim Hung (洪進揚) told a news conference at the Taiwan Stock Exchange in Taipei.
CarUX is expected to become a tier-one supplier across multiple product platforms, leveraging Pioneer’s strengths in the automotive sound system and human machine interface software developments, Hung said.
By integrating the research and development and manufacturing networks of both companies, CarUX would have better regional capabilities and more agility to serve the evolving needs of global original equipment manufacturers and consumers, he said.
Pioneer has long-term partnerships with major Japanese and global automakers, including Toyota Motor Corp. The company offers a wide range of auto electronics from navigation systems, stereos, audio-video systems and speakers to map software, its Web site says.
The company generated ￥240 billion (US$1.7 billion) in revenue in the fiscal year ending March last year and maintains a healthy financial structure, Hung said.
CarUX plans to arrange a bridge loan and a syndicated loan to fund the acquisition, Hung said.
The deal is not only a capital alliance, but also a strategic synergy between two firms, he said.
The transaction is subject to regulatory approvals and other customary closing conditions. Details of the transaction have not been disclosed.
HORMUZ ISSUE: The US president said he expected crude prices to drop at the end of the war, which he called a ‘minor excursion’ that could continue ‘for a little while’ The United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Kuwait started reducing oil production, as the near-closure of the crucial Strait of Hormuz ripples through energy markets and affects global supply. Abu Dhabi National Oil Co (ADNOC) is “managing offshore production levels to address storage requirements,” the company said in a statement, without giving details. Kuwait Petroleum Corp said it was lowering production at its oil fields and refineries after “Iranian threats against safe passage of ships through the Strait of Hormuz.” The war in the Middle East has all but closed Hormuz, the narrow waterway linking the Persian Gulf to the open seas,
Nanya Technology Corp (南亞科技) yesterday said the DRAM supply crunch could extend through 2028, as the artificial intelligence (AI) boom has led the world’s major memory makers to dramatically reduce production of standard DRAM and allocate a significant portion of their capacity for high-bandwidth memory (HBM) chips. The most severe supply constraints would stretch to the first half of next year due to “very limited” increases in new DRAM capacity worldwide, Nanya Technology president Lee Pei-ing (李培瑛) told a news briefing. The company plans to increase monthly 12-inch wafer capacity to 20,000 in the first half of 2028 after a
Taiwan has enough crude oil reserves for more than 100 days and sufficient natural gas reserves for more than 11 days, both above the regulatory safety requirement, Minister of Economic Affairs Kung Ming-hsin (龔明鑫) said yesterday, adding that the government would prioritize domestic price stability as conflicts in the Middle East continue. Overall, energy supply for this month is secure, and the government is continuing efforts to ensure sufficient supply for next month, Kung told reporters after meeting with representatives from business groups at the ministry in Taipei. The ministry has been holding daily cross-ministry meetings at the Executive Yuan to ensure
Property transactions in the nation’s six special municipalities plunged last month, as a lengthy Lunar New Year holiday combined with ongoing credit tightening dampened housing market activity, data compiled by local land administration offices released on Monday showed. The six cities recorded a total of 10,480 property transfers last month, down 42.5 percent from January and marking the second-lowest monthly level on record, the data showed. “The sharp drop largely reflected seasonal factors and tighter credit conditions,” Evertrust Rehouse Co (永慶房屋) deputy research manager Chen Chin-ping (陳金萍) said. The nine-day Lunar New Year holiday fell in February this year, reducing
RSS